The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1887-01-05
OUR FIRST BATTLE.
by JAMES FRANKLIN Fits.

BY JAMES FRANKLIN
To any veteran of two or three years
faithful service in the field this will be q
most attractive title. After being some
what hardened to war by the smoke, the
toll, and the blood of several active cam
paigns, IL is interesting TO go back to the
first occasion when he found himself I'M
der fire, and review its scenes and Incl
dents.
Let the reader turn to the map of Lou
isiana, and examine its southeast part, west
OF the Mississippi From Morgan City
known during the war as Brashear), up to
New Iberia, he will see narrow neck of
land between the Gulf of Mexico and Grand
Lake, which is traversed by Bayou Teche
on its way to Berwick Bay. This neck, as
i call it, is even narrower than it looks to
be on the map; for impenetrable swamp
forests bound 1t on the Gulf side, so that,
from bayou 10 swamp, there Is often n
width of less than two miles OF territory.
AT the narrowest point, which may be
marked on the map as about halfway be-
tween Brashear and Franklin, The Confed-
crate General Richard Taylor had, in the
early spring of 1868, constructed large
earthworks right across the neck, mounted
them with artillery, some of which was
quite heavy, and remained there as the
to come up and fight.
The battle that occurred here on the 18th
and 18th of April was the first eX-
perience of the kind t. probably three
fourths of the Union side who were en-
gagged in it. Seventeen of our regiments
were under fire here; how many TAYLOR had
is unknown; but he certainly had enough
to serve about twenty five pieces of artillery,
which made things quite lively for us in
those two days. This fight. known as the
battle of Bisland, from the plantation on
which it occurred, occupies no conspicuous
place in the history of the war; indeed, it
is probable that thousands of the readers
of that history never heard of it; but it was
certainly the real thing to us, IN the way
of war; and was attended by incidents of a
highly interesting character. l propose TO
describe the field as / saw it in an Off hand
way and will mako it much more interest
ing than the historian could.
We moved out from our camps on the
westerly side of Berwick Bay on the morn
ing of the 18th. 1t was Sunday; but that
circumstance has never made any pause in
. war. and il did not in ours. | feel like con-
Tossing, in all humility, that the volunteers
often had great difficulty in keeping the
calendar straight when out on Campaign,
and that Sundays were too apt to be treated
like other days. But in Louisiana there
was one test of the day that never failed.
When the negro women exhibited them-
selves in the gaudiest attire, decked in all
the colors or the rainbow, then the Sab
bath had come-sure!
Scouts and spies and friendly negroes
had given information as to where the hos
tile works were. and one days steady march
would have brought us up to them. But
the country was by no means open, though
fiat. II thick with mansions
brick sugar houses, growing cane and other
obstacles which might conceal hostile
skirmishers; so our advance was cautious.
1t was made generally in two columns, one
in the road along the bayou, and one
through the fields. Two gunboats kept
along with us, steaming up the Teche, and
a small force of cavalry was a quarter of n
mile up 10 the front
Let me pause only long enough 10 speak
of this wonderful country we were passing
through. The soil was rich black allu-
vium, deposited in past ages by the Missis-
sippi and its outleading bayous. Nature
fairly revels in that soil and that climate.
Vast plantations of giant sugar-cane are
here; oranges lang on the trees almost the
year round; the magnolia shows its beauti-
full white flowers; roses were abloom every
where along the way; blackberries were
ripe-in April! Further up the country
are prairie lands, where herds of beef cat
tie and hardy ponies abound. During this
campaign army-rations, save coffee, were
almost discarded; sweet potatoes and fresh
meat were our staples. In the bayous
great arigators splashed and padded. All
along the Teche were the homes Of wealth
and luxury-stately white mansions, the
broad plantation lands stretching in front,
their rear verandas overhangng the
stream. which was often arched over by the
branches of trees meeting overhead. Ru-
mors of war had probably reached this Area
dian region; but that hostile army should
ever invade ii had not been accounted to
be within the bounds of possibility. 1t was
upon these scenes that our army came in
those April days, and heavily was the cruel
hand of war laid upon this people. With
the best of discipline in an army, some law
lessness and pillage will ever prevail, and
the people who fled at our approach in many
cases found their homes stripped and in
disorder on their return. A large proper
ton of these people were of French ex-
traction, and the sight of the tri-color flag
from n window was n common one as we
passed. But TO no class of the population
did our Eruption bring such establishment
and ioy as to the negroes. When il is re-
membered that in 1860 this class exceeded
the whites in number in Louisiana, a faint
idea may be formed OF the scenes that were
continually occurring along our march. The
negro in Louisiana is-or was-an African,
with all that the name implies; uncouth,
outlandish, with all the physical character
istics of his race in a state of great devel-
opment. Frequently as We passed plan
tation house there would be an Eruption OF
fifty or n hundred darkies out into the
road. and the soldiers sense of the ludi-
crous would be gratifed by outlaws, caper-
ines. kicking mp of heels. and loud cries OF
aBress de Lawdl See dose Linkum sojers!'
40, Lawd Cod breff ole Masr Abuml
"why, honey, dey have no horns and tails,
as ole mas r saidl" And then would come
great chorus, yves gwine along wild yo
aliiD And the rear Of the column weuld